Esler Pilots DeLaSalle Back to Final Week
By
Tom Markowski
Special for Second Half
March 19, 2018
WARREN – There isn’t much that Greg Esler hasn’t seen or experienced as a coach and as a father.
Through it all he’s learned to take nothing for granted, in life and as a coach.
Esler, 63, coached St. Clair Shores Lake Shore to its first and only MHSAA boys basketball title in 1994, in Class B. That team was led by Travis Conlan, who finished second in the voting for Mr. Basketball that season. Conlan would go on to play at University of Michigan, one of a number of Esler-coached players who went on to the college – and for some – professional ranks.
Esler is in his 31st season as a head coach, with the last 24 at Warren DeLaSalle. Twenty-one times the Pilots have won a District title with Esler on the bench. In 2007, DeLaSalle reached a Class A Semifinal for just the second time in school history, as it lost to Manny Harris and Detroit Redford 56-50. (Note: In addition to two Class A Semifinal appearances, DeLaSalle also reached a Class B Final in 1982).
Consistency has been a hallmark of Esler’s programs, and even after all these years a fire burns in his stomach. He’s retained a burning desire to compete and to win. As the years have piled up, Esler has become more appreciative of the success his program has achieved and the experiences gained.
So when DeLaSalle defeated Macomb Dakota, 56-51, in a Regional Final last Wednesday, there was reason to celebrate. As good as DeLaSalle has been recently, it hadn’t won a Regional title since 2010. The Pilots have been to the Detroit Catholic League final each of the last three seasons and have won five District titles since 2010 including the last three. But the end of last season stung more than most. DeLaSalle reached a Regional Final and then lost to Troy, 48-40, in an ugly game where the Pilots shot less than 30 percent from the field.
Most of that team is back as the Pilots head into the final week of this season. Esler has nine seniors including two of the top players in the league in point guard Justin Fischer and guard-forward Luke Pfromm, the starting quarterback on the Division 2 championship football team.
Esler started coaching at Warren St. Anne grade school in 1983, then went to DeLaSalle for three seasons beginning in 1985 under then-coach Gary Buslepp. Esler got his shot as a head coach in 1987 at Lake Shore and quickly made that program relevant. Lake Shore reached the Class B Semifinals in 1993 before losing to coach Norwaine Reed and Saginaw Buena Vista.
Esler took over the DeLaSalle program at the start of the 1994-95 season. His career record stands at 530-216 heading into tonight’s Class A Quarterfinal against Detroit U-D Jesuit.
“We instilled a system here,” he said. “The first thing is to have your players in condition. Second is defense. I’ve always stressed defense. And third, and maybe this should be first, is talent. We’ve always had really good players here. And the players we’ve had want to get better.”
What often goes unnoticed in a basketball program is the work of the assistant coaches. Esler has been blessed with loyal and knowledgeable assistants. His top assistant is Tom Mehl, who played for Esler for two seasons at Lake Shore. Mehl was on staff for Esler’s last four seasons at Lake Shore and has been with Esler every step of the way at DeLaSalle.
Jeff Becker is in his 13th season as an assistant, and another, Dave Grauzer, recently left the program and now is an assistant at Traverse City West.
“Surrounding yourself with good people is at the top of the list,” Esler said. “One thing about Tom, there’s no one I’ve seen who can go to a game to scout and pick up something no one else would see. Like a player who takes two dribbles before driving to his right or left. For Becker, it’s organization. He works well with the kids, and he’s got the post players. Mehl has the guards.
“Over the years I’ve listened. Listened to other coaches. I don’t have all the answers. I talk to Steve Hall at (Detroit) Cass Tech all the time. He’s been a great friend over the years.”
This team has a closeness not always seen. The fact that there are nine seniors is one reason. Esler points out that he’s been with this group for more than 100 days this season, and when you’re around a group that long tempers can flare – so it’s important to keep the present in perspective and realize they all want to reach the same goal.
“We do a lot of things outside of basketball,” Esler said. “Last week four of my captains read to the students at (St. Clair Shores) St. Germaine grade school. My wife, Renee, is a fourth and fifth grade teacher there, and it’s way for the players to interact with the younger students.
“I read an article recently on (Michigan) coach (John) Beilein and how the game has changed. The kids have changed. We watch game film but not like we used to. Their attention span isn’t like it used to be. The technology now, with Facebook and texting, it’s unbelievable. We might watch film for 20 minutes where we used to watch for hours.
“My players will tell you, I love the practices much more than they do. Games are like taking a test. If you didn’t win, maybe you failed at some area that cost you. They love each other and they do a good job of listening. All five starters have scored 20 points or more in a game this season. And they don’t get rattled. We were down four to Dakota with four minutes to go and Pfromm came to me in the huddle and said, ‘Don’t worry coach. We got this.’ I can see why they won a state title in football.”
Fischer has matured significantly as a leader and force offensively. A three-year starter, he has signed with Lake Superior State.
Fischer came into the program as a skinny 5-foot-10 freshman. By the time he was a junior, he had grown five inches. Now he’s 6-4 and weighs 185 pounds.
“I was a pass-first guard as a sophomore,” he said. “I’ve worked on my shooting, just working on my total game.
“We were pumped up for that Dakota game. We got the crowd going crazy. We were down and Luke hit a couple of 3s. I had a dunk and hit four free throws late.”
DeLaSalle (18-7) will play Catholic League Central rival Detroit U-D Jesuit (22-3) next. The Class A Quarterfinal will be played Tuesday at 5 p.m. at Calihan Hall, the site of the Catholic League final. Jesuit won that game, 71-64. In fact, Fischer has lost nine consecutive games to U-D as a varsity player.
He shouldn’t feel alone. DeLaSalle hasn’t defeated U-D since 2014 when the teams tied for the Catholic League Central regular-season title – a streak of 14 straight defeats to the Cubs. U-D won this season’s meetings 64-45, 59-57 and 64-55.
Esler keeps U-D recent domination of his program on the light side.
“I’ve said I’d have to coach until 2031 to get to .500 against them,” he said.
Tom Markowski is a columnist and directs website coverage for the State Champs! Sports Network. He previously covered primarily high school sports for the The Detroit News from 1984-2014, focusing on the Detroit area and contributing to statewide coverage of football and basketball. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Warren DeLaSalle coach Greg Esler talks things over during his team’s Regional Final win against Macomb Dakota. (Middle) Justin Fischer launches a free throw during the 56-51 victory.
Breslin Bound: Boys Report Week 10
February 18, 2020
By Geoff Kimmerly
Second Half editor
The countdown has begun.
Five days until we announce District brackets with the top two teams on separate sides for the first time. Just under three weeks until the regular season ends. Five weeks from today we’ll be packing for the Breslin Center and this season’s Boys Basketball Semifinals and Finals.
It could go by in a flash. But in the meantime, there are tons of moments to savor – especially at the local league level. We turn a lot of our focus to those in this week’s report.
“Breslin Bound” is powered by MI Student Aid and based on results and schedules posted for each school at MHSAA.com. Send corrections or missing scores to [email protected].
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Detroit Cass Tech 66, Detroit Douglass 41 – The Technicians (17-1) repeated as Detroit Public School League Tournament champions with a commanding win over the Hurricanes (15-4).
2. Wyoming 62, Grand Rapids Christian 61 – The Wolves’ only loss this winter was by two Jan. 17 to the Eagles (14-1), and Wyoming (14-1) taking the rematch eventually could result in them sharing the Ottawa-Kent Conference Gold title.
3. Marquette 68, Escanaba 64 – The Redmen (15-3) locked up their fourth-straight Great Northern Conference championship by avenging their lone league loss, to second-place Escanaba (11-6).
4. Belleville 53, Westland John Glenn 49 – The Tigers (13-3) earned a share of the Kensington Lakes Activities Association East title with a second win over the second-place Rockets (11-5).
5. Ann Arbor Skyline 53, Ann Arbor Huron 40 – The Eagles (11-5) not only avenged a Jan. 24 defeat but handed the first this season to the rival River Rats (14-1).
Watch List
With an eye toward March, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Hudsonville (14-1) The Eagles already have clinched the O-K Red title outright as no other league team has fewer than four losses. The championship was Hudsonville’s second straight after going just 10-12 two seasons ago. The lone loss this winter came against another Division 1 contender, Orchard Lake St. Mary’s 65-47 on Feb. 1 – and the Eagles will get another major test tonight in Wyoming (14-1) as they prep to build on last year’s Regional Final run.
Ypsilanti Lincoln (13-2) The reigning Division 1 champion has taken the first step toward another memorable finish, clinching a share of the Southeastern Conference White title Friday with a 68-45 win over second-place Dexter. The Railsplitters and sophomore phenom Emoni Bates also have impressive wins over Okemos (12-3) and Detroit Edison (10-4), and the losses look pretty great too – to Division 2 contender Benton Harbor and on opening night to River Rouge in a preview of a possible playoff matchup.
DIVISION 2
Bridgeport (16-1) A loss two weeks ago to Frankenmuth was the only trip-up as Bridgeport has moved within two wins of clinching a share of the Tri-Valley Conference East title for the fourth-straight season. The Bearcats are second in Division 2 MPR with wins also over Linden (14-2), Skyline (11-5), the Eagles (12-2) and Flint Southwestern (13-2) among 10 total against teams with double-digit victories. That also includes a pair against Alma (12-4), which handed Bridgeport its only loss of last season in a Regional Semifinal.
Carrollton (14-0) The Cavaliers already have tied their most wins for a season since 2014-15, and they’ll be in line to claim the Tri-Valley Conference West title if they can finish a season sweep Friday of second-place Hemlock (14-1), which Carrollton defeated the first time 64-46 on Jan. 17. The Cavaliers also own a 77-70 win over Greater Thumb Conference West leader Reese and will close the regular-season with another nice test in currently-unbeaten Kingston.
DIVISION 3
Detroit Loyola (12-2) The Bulldogs are Detroit Catholic League AA champions and a pair of back-to-back five-point losses to Hamtramck and Dearborn Divine Child from a perfect record. They avenged that defeat to Divine Child with a 17-point win Feb. 11, and they’ve also handed Macomb Lutheran North (12-2) its only defeats this winter. The league title was Loyola’s second straight, and it also reached the Regional Finals last season.
Oscoda (15-0) The Owls have run their regular-season winning streak to 35 and remain the pacesetter in the North Star League Big Dipper thanks in part to a pair of double-digit wins over Mio (11-4). Oscoda also has a 30-point win over Posen (11-4) and a 21-pointer over Hale (14-2) with the rematch against the latter coming up Friday. They’ll also hope to build next month on last year’s Regional Finals run.
DIVISION 4
Bellevue (13-2) The Broncos have won 10 straight as they pursue what would be a fifth-straight Southern Central Athletic Association West championship. Bellevue has a slight edge on Battle Creek St. Philip after defeating the Tigers last week for the second time, this time 54-41. The Broncos have more to aim for as well – they’ve won seven straight District titles and reached the Quarterfinals a year ago.
Dryden (11-4) Despite trailing Kingston and International Academy of Flint in the North Central Thumb League Stars, Dryden is ahead of IAF and No. 4 statewide in Division 4 MPR. The Cardinals split with the Phoenix, winning the second meeting 49-34 on Jan. 31, and Dryden’s only losses of calendar year 2020 are two to Kingston. New Lothrop (14-2) in the regular-season finale will be a challenge, but winning out would push Dryden past its 15-win totals of the last two seasons before the playoffs start.
Can't-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these games coming up:
Tuesday – Okemos (12-3) at East Lansing (13-1) – The Chiefs lead the Capital Area Activities Conference Blue by a game over the Trojans thanks to a 69-51 win in their first meeting Jan. 14.
Tuesday – Canton (11-5) at Howell (13-3) – The Highlanders can clinch the Kensington Lakes Activities Association West title outright with a win over second-place Canton; their first meeting went to Howell 50-48 on Jan. 24.
Thursday – Cadillac (13-2) at Petoskey (10-4) – These two are tied for first in the Big North Conference, and the winner of this game wins a share of the league title – and the whole thing if Traverse City Central loses to Gaylord this night or another of its final three league games.
Friday – Blissfield (14-1) at Onsted (11-4) – The Royals lead Onsted in the Lenawee County Athletic Association by a game, but lost the first meeting with the Wildcats 55-53 on Jan. 7.
Saturday – Benton Harbor (15-1) at River Rouge (16-1) – Last season’s Division 2 runner-up Rouge hosts the 2018 Class B champion Tigers in a matchup of teams that could both end up in MHSAA Finals next month.
Second Half’s weekly “Breslin Bound” reports are powered by MI Student Aid, a part of the Office of Postsecondary Financial Planning located within the Michigan Department of Treasury. MI Student Aid encourages students to pursue postsecondary education by providing access to student financial resources and information. MI Student Aid administers the state’s 529 college savings programs (MET/MESP), as well as scholarship and grant programs that help make college Accessible, Affordable and Attainable for you. Connect with MI Student Aid at www.michigan.gov/mistudentaid and find more information on Facebook and Twitter @mistudentaid.
PHOTO: Flint Beecher, here against Burton Bendle on Feb. 7, leads Division 3 MPR with three weeks remaining in the regular season. (Photo by Terry Lyons.)